


Fall at Seventeen

by Zetal (Rodinia)



Series: Teen Love Triangle [2]
Category: Yuri!!! on Ice (Anime)
Genre: F/M, Love Triangles, Teen Angst, hinted future Leoji, mentioned Leo/Isabella
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-10-02
Updated: 2017-10-02
Packaged: 2019-01-08 02:53:04
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,385
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/12245652
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Rodinia/pseuds/Zetal





	Fall at Seventeen

JJ thought he’d be happier to see Leo dating Isabella. Isabella was a good friend, Leo was a good friend, he knew the two of them would be good to each other, or he wouldn’t have encouraged Leo to go for it when he’d asked about her having a boyfriend.

He’d tried to be normal around them, but he’d clearly failed, because Leo was asking him what was wrong. If he’d known what was wrong, he’d have said, but he didn’t!

Thankfully, he had sisters. Sisters were the best thing ever. Andrée cornered him as he watched Leo head out to pick up Isabella for a date. “JJ, you’re an idiot, you know that, right?”

“No? Why am I an idiot?”

“This thing with Leo and Isabella. I know you want to be happy for them. You know why you’re not, don’t you?”

“No?”

Andrée rolled her eyes. “It’s because you like Isabella.”

“Of course I like Isabella. She’s my friend. If I didn’t like Isabella, I’d have told Leo that and why.” JJ didn’t understand his sister sometimes.

“No, you doof.” Andrée shook his shoulders. “You _like_ her.”

“I know that! I just don’t see what that has to do with anything!”

“You want to be the one dating her! You like her as more than just a friend!”

“No, I don’t!” But JJ wondered. Andrée was usually pretty smart, and not prone to romantic outbursts. Did he want to date Isabella?

“Yes, you do. You’re jealous, and you feel like you can’t say anything because Leo’s your friend and you don’t want to hurt him.”

JJ tried to imagine himself out on a date with Isabella. Walking with her, going to dinner, maybe stealing a kiss under the stars… “Well, shit.” He shut down the fantasy before it got too awkward with his sister standing right there. “Why couldn’t you have made me realize this three weeks ago, before Leo went and got there first?”

“Because I didn’t know about it three weeks ago. Sorry, JJ. Don’t worry, long-distance relationships are hard, chances are they’ll break up by the end of the year. Then you can swoop in like the king you are and comfort her, and make her fall for you instead.”

“That’s awful! Hoping for them to break up? I’m not a jerk!”

Andrée clearly wanted to say something, but all she did was shake her head as she left.

 

The sound of a guitar coming from Leo’s room made JJ pause. Tomorrow was the last night Leo would be here, and there was a big thing planned for all the skaters at the training camp, so tonight was his last night to go out with Bella. What was he doing here, playing JJ’s guitar? He knocked, and opened the door when Leo invited him in.

Leo’s eyes were red, and his voice shook a little. “Hi, JJ. Was I playing too loud, or do you want your guitar back? I know I shouldn’t take it without asking…”

“It’s okay. I was just wondering why you were here instead of out with Isabella.”

Leo swallowed hard and strummed a bit on the guitar. “Bella broke up with me. She said she couldn’t handle a long-distance relationship.”

“Oh, no! Leo, I’m so sorry.” A small, traitorous part of him leapt for joy – that meant Isabella was single, and he could… no. He shut that train of thought down. He wasn’t going to get with Isabella while Leo was still grieving the end of the relationship. “Is there anything I can do to help you feel better?”

“Not really. It’s just… I’m going to miss her, and I’m a little mad, too. If she didn’t want to be in a long-distance relationship, why did she agree to go out with me in the first place?”

JJ shook his head. “I wish I knew.”

 

Things were awkward at the rink as JJ tried to avoid Isabella, and Isabella seemed to be using every excuse she could think of to talk to JJ. When school started, JJ groaned a little when he realized that he and Isabella had five classes together that year. Last year, he’d have been over the moon about it. Isabella was smart and the two of them often studied together. If JJ could either get over his crush on Isabella or let himself believe it wouldn’t hurt Leo if he tried to be with her, this would be the perfect excuse.

Their first study group, JJ nearly bolted when he realized it was going to be _just_ him and Isabella, studying in her room – door open, naturally, not that there was anything to worry about. Isabella was dressed up, too, wearing a short skirt and a blouse that emphasized her figure. It was so hard not to stare, and he did his best to avoid sneaking peeks at her while they studied, but she was determined to mess with his head.

He jumped when his phone rang. “Sorry, Isabella. It’s Leo, is it okay if I take this?”

“Sure, go ahead.” Was it just JJ’s imagination, or was there a flash of guilt in her eyes as she turned back to her books?

“JJ! How’s it going?”

“It’s going okay. How are you? You’re competing this weekend, aren’t you?” JJ had moved up to seniors, but Leo hadn't. Skating without Leo was going to be weird.

“Yeah, I’m in Japan right now, and you’re never going to believe this. Someone recognized me from social media!”

“Yeah? Good recognized or ‘drop everything and come to Japan to save me from my own personal Beks’ recognized?”

“Hey, Beks isn’t creepy about his fanboying!" He wasn't, really, but JJ's duty as Otabek's friend was to give him hell for his borderline obsession with some Russian junior. "But good. And I think I might be a little gay. He’s the cutest person I’ve ever seen!”

That was incredibly good to hear. “How does he feel about long-distance relationships?”

“He’s just as into social media as Phichit and I are, so he thinks he can make one work… in January.”

“Why in January?”

“Because he’s fifteen. His parents don’t want him to date until sixteen. Is it creepy to wait for him to have his birthday instead of looking for someone else?”

JJ thought about that. “Do you want to date someone else? Like date just for the sake of dating?”

“No.”

“Then unless that changes, I don’t think it’s creepy. Does this mean you’re over Isabella?”

“Yeah, I guess. I still think we could’ve made it work if she’d been willing to give it a chance, but she wasn’t and I’m not going to waste any more time whining about it.”

JJ stood up and walked out of the room, drawing a curious look from Isabella. “Would you mind if I asked her out?”

“You like her? Since when?”

“I’m not… I’m really not sure. Probably since before this summer, but I didn’t realize I liked her that way until you’d already asked her out.”

“Wow. I’m sorry, man, if I’d known… but go for it. Good luck.”

“Thanks. Good luck with your boy!” JJ hung up and walked back in.

Isabella looked up. “How’s Leo doing?”

“He’s good. He met someone.” JJ decided that Isabella didn’t need to know the details about them not dating yet. From what Leo said, it sounded like that was just formalities.

“Good for him. I hope this one goes better for him.”

“Why’d you say yes if you didn’t want to do long-distance? He wasn’t going to stay in Canada no matter what.”

“I thought he was just looking for some fun for the time he was here. I wasn’t expecting him to be looking for something serious. I never meant to hurt him.” Isabella sighed and closed the book. “I know, I did, and that’s something I can’t ever undo. Is he still mad at me?”

“No, more confused than anything.” JJ furrowed his brow. Something seemed to be missing from Isabella’s explanation, but he didn’t want to push her. “So, um… do you maybe wanna go out with me sometime? I know I travel a lot, but I always come back to Toronto, so…”

“Sure! I’d like that!” Isabella’s face lit up and she hugged him.


End file.
